Personalized, Reconfigurable Interiors in Shared Autonomous Vehicles

The year 2016 was pivotal in autonomous vehicle development. It marked a significant industry transition away from the pursuit of gradually improving semi-autonomy in favor of a renewed push towards fully autonomous and driverless operation. As ABI Research described in two previous reports, Car Sharing and the New IoE Transportation Service Economy (AN-1954) and Mobility as a Service (AN-2347), this will revolutionize the way transport is consumed: enabling users to abandon costly car ownership and summon driverless vehicles when needed. In recent months, OEMs such as Ford, Tesla, BMW, and Volkswagen demonstrated their understanding of the implications for their established model; setting up new smart mobility sub-brands to manage transition from selling cars to providing the Car as a Service.